Former Ghanian leader Jerry Rawlings has been buried with military honours at a state funeral in Accra.
Rawlings, who died in November aged 73, held power for two decades in Ghana, first as military ruler and later as elected president.
He was buried in a coffin draped in Ghana’s national colours of red, yellow, green and black, and an officer’s cap was placed at the head of the closed coffin with a glittering gold-plated sword.
Rawlings first came to power in 1979 when he banded together with other junior officers frustrated over widespread corruption to take control.
He quickly handed the reins to an elected president, but was soon back at the top following another coup on December 31, 1981.
The son of a Scottish father and Ghanaian mother, he became a national icon as he headed Ghana for 20 years until 2001, being voted in as president at the ballot box in 1992 and ushering in democracy.
Hundreds of Ghanaians earlier this week paid their final respects as his coffin laid in state during two days of national mourning under strict COVID-19 protocols.
Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo described Rawlings as a “charismatic Leader”
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